FootyChatter.com

World Cup Germany thrashed Slovakia to qualify for the World Cup Stuart Franklin/Getty Images Germany will be at the World Cup. A stuttering, unsatisfying 2025 ended with an uncharacteristically dominant 6-0 win over Slovakia in Leipzig, confirming their place at next summer’s tournament. The Germans are four-time winners of the World Cup and have never failed to qualify. But while that record never seemed seriously under threat, they trudged through Group A — and the calendar year as a whole — in a way that made the comprehensive nature of Monday’s win a surprise. Advertisement After all, the atmosphere around Julian Nagelsmann’s side has been getting increasingly negative. Believers in German arrogance, meet something more pervasive and popular: German angst. Cloud by cloud, the skies over the national team have been darkening over the past year, and the air has become acrid in a way that nobody could have expected 18 months ago. Back then, after Germany were eliminated from the 2024 European Championship, tears were shed. The good kind. By players and staff, sad to be leaving what had been a happy, harmonious camp in Herzogenaurach, and by Nagelsmann, who wept during the press conference held the morning after that bitter 2-1 defeat by eventual champions Spain. It was a restorative tournament. The fan parks were full and the football was generally good. Had Marc Cucurella been punished for a handball in that quarter-final, Germany might have gone further. But they still gained more than they lost and the tournament performance seemed part of a smooth upward curve towards the World Cup. “There is no point in undergoing any major overhaul because we have a very good environment and this is a really good foundation to build on, ” Nagelsmann said through his tears during that farewell press conference, and most agreed that he was right. Toni Kroos was retiring from football and Thomas Muller and Manuel Neuer had each made their final appearance for Germany, but the squad was still powerful and promised to be well-seasoned by 2026. Jamal Musiala and Florian Wirtz would be two years further towards their respective primes. Kai Havertz would still be leading the attack. Joshua Kimmich and Antonio Rudiger would still be forces in the game and Aleksandar Pavlovic would finally be free of his troublesome tonsils and ready to anchor the midfield. Germany, it was imagined, would be a blend of seasoned winners and emerging world-class talent, and they would take some beating in North America. Advertisement But instead of accumulating momentum over these past 18 months, Nagelsmann’s team have been gently but consistently wounded — by results, by bad luck, and by messy situations that, combined, have left supporters fidgeting nervously. On the pitch, Germany have produced few convincing performances since Euro 2024. They qualified for the finals of the Nations League after a careless 5-4 aggregate win over a mediocre Italy, but then lost to Portugal and France once there. A World Cup qualification group containing Northern Ireland, Slovakia and Luxembourg offered the chance to throw their weight around, but — until this final game in Leipzig — the performances were really no better. Germany lost dismally (2-0) in Bratislava in September and while they may have remained unbeaten since — conceding just one goal — old, unwelcome issues re-emerged in those games, such as the inability to consistently create chances, vulnerability to opponents’ quick transitions and at defensive set pieces. The group was not strong enough to make those flaws really matter, but these were problems assumed to be fixed and their reappearance has been dispiriting. Nagelsmann has faced much criticism. Nevertheless, a partial explanation for his team’s regression is plain bad luck. Musiala, Bayern Munich’s outstanding playmaker, has been unavailable since suffering a serious ankle injury at the Club World Cup and, offensively, Germany possess far less threat without him. Giant Borussia Monchengladbach forward Tim Kleindienst, who had helped compensate for the injured Havertz, suffered a serious knee injury in April and has not been seen since. Marc-Andre ter Stegen, long expected to be Neuer’s replacement in goal, made just two appearances for Germany in 2025, between two separate, serious injuries to his knee and back. Hoffenheim’s Oliver Baumann has emerged as first choice in his stead, but unhelpful stories about Neuer’s potential return have lingered in the background, compromising stability further. Advertisement Baumann played well through the autumn — and made a terrific save against Slovakia while the score was only 1-0 — but the story about Neuer’s return continues to have life and will inevitably rumble on through the winter. Wirtz is another issue. In Germany, there has been bemusement at the English response to his Liverpool form. When Gary Neville recently described Wirtz as being “like a child” during the 3-0 defeat by Manchester City, it drew an indignant response from parts of the German media. If they are to win the World Cup, Wirtz will have to make a substantial contribution. And the chances of him doing that are surely harmed by relentless criticism over on “the island”. Nagelsmann has no control over that situation, but he has still created issues for himself — or is at least perceived to have done. When he was first appointed (in September 2023, following the dismissal of Hansi Flick), he brought a welcome meritocracy to his squad selections. Previously uncapped players such as Maximilian Mittelstadt and Chris Fuhrich were selected, often at the expense of low-performing stars at bigger clubs, bringing a freshness with them. Fast forward to the present day and Nagelsmann is now often accused of deferring towards safer picks. The selections of Leroy Sane and Leon Goretzka in the most recent squad were not well received, nor were the decisions to omit Angelo Stiller (24, Stuttgart) and Tom Bischof (20, Bayern Munich), both of whom have strong cases and would have been more interesting options. Said El Mala, a thrilling young forward from Koln, was picked in the senior squad, primarily — as Nagelsmann explained — to help him acclimatise. El Mala has a growing reputation and is expected to become a full international before the end of the season, but was kept on the bench against Luxembourg and then sent back to the under-21s before Monday’s game against Slovakia. Nagelsmann was not necessarily wrong to do that. El Mala was on loan in the 3. Liga last season and has made just three Bundesliga starts in his career. A first senior cap would have been a lightning-quick promotion by any measure. But he was one of the few curiosities German supporters had heading into this international break, a source of excitement at the end of a drab year, and not to see him make his debut was disappointing. Advertisement It was also another chance to grumble. In this instance, those complaints have come at the expense of obvious positives: Assan Ouedraogo’s goalscoring debut, the re-emergence of Ridle Baku and Nick Woltemade’s excellent goalscoring form. Nagelsmann has overseen those developments, too, and — actually — the performances of Sane and Goretzka against Slovakia entirely vindicated his faith. But then the conflicting nature of these conversations describes perfectly where the German national team finds itself. And this is, ultimately, what big nations do between tournaments. They pick holes, start fights among themselves and find drama in the shadows. They imagine worst-case scenarios and ruthless, future opponents exploiting glaring weaknesses. That is particularly true in Germany, for whom the scars from the past two World Cups — the humiliating group-stage eliminations suffered in Russia in 2018 and Qatar in 2022 — have yet to properly heal. They will have the chance to right those wrongs, though. How good can this Germany be? Nobody needs to know now; we will find out next summer. Spot the pattern. Connect the terms Find the hidden link between sports terms Play today's puzzle